Obama Administration Accelerates Deployment of EVs, Charging Infrastructure

In a wide-ranging initiative, the Obama Administration provided a series of announcements for National Electric Vehicle Charging Corridors on U.S. Highways, as part of a continued partnership between the Administration, states, localities, and the private sector to achieve these shared goals:

For the first time, the United State Department of Transportation (DOT) is establishing 48 national electric vehicle charging corridors on our highways. These newly designated electric vehicle routes cover nearly 25,000 miles, in 35 states.

In addition, the announcement highlights numerous related programs, including:

28 states, utilities, vehicle manufactures, and change organizations are committing to accelerate the deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure on the DOT’s corridors;
24 state and local governments are committing to partner with the Administration and increase the procurement of electric vehicles in their fleets;
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is conducting two studies to evaluate the optimal national electric vehicle charging deployment scenarios, including along DOT’s designated fueling corridors; and
38 new businesses, non-profits, universities, and utilities are signing on to DOE’s Workplace Charging Challenge and committing to provide EV charging access for their workforce.

Today’s announcements build on a record of progress from multiple programs across the Administration that work to scale up EVs and fueling infrastructure, including at the Departments of Energy, Transportation, Defense, the Environmental Protection Agency and with the private sector.

This summer, the Administration opened loan guarantees totaling up to $4.5 billion to support the commercial-scale deployment of innovative electric vehicle charging facilities and in collaboration with the Administration, nearly 50 industry members signed on to the Guiding Principles to Promote Electric Vehicles and Charging Infrastructure. This effort launched the beginning of a collaboration between the government and industry to increase the deployment of EV charging infrastructure that is carried forward in the announcements today.

The following organizations are committing to help accelerate the deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure along the Alternative Fuel Corridors designated by the U.S. Department of Transportation. These initial and future corridors will serve as a basis for a national network of electric vehicle charging infrastructure to enable coast to coast zero emission mobility on our nation’s highways: